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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: bay · club · rock · perch · drill · press · degree · bass

  1. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  8. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  19. My mare is ________________ in color.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. degree — an amount
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. bass — the fish
  5. press — a publisher
  6. club — for golf
  7. rock — music
  8. rock — a stone
  9. perch — the fish
  10. press — to push
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. drill — army training
  13. press — newspapers
  14. club — for dancing
  15. bay — a part of the sea
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. drill — the tool
  18. rock — to move gently
  19. bay — a horse colour
  20. bass — low music
  21. bay — to keep at bay
  22. club — a group
  23. drill — a practice
  24. degree — temperature

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com